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Monday, October 6, 2008

Instead of the casual information apocalypse this here planet enthusiastically looked forward to in 1999, Takumi gave you Mars Matrix, a solid Bullet Hell effort to celebrate all the years starting with the digit "2" - AND beyond.

Published by Capcom and demonstrating pretty much all the colors and shapes the conservative Anime Mind could conceive by the day, Mars Matrix arrives to smash all your preconceptions about orthodox projectile sizes and their corresponding speed. Face the Bubblegum Shooter, and sink those extremely vicious teeth into it - be aware though that this effort will : Bite Yer Butt Back.

Enjoy and Read on!

The most curious thing that is about to assault your grateful senses is Mars Matrix's rendition method. The effort comes in a standard aspect ratio, which is something to be mildly perplexed about, considering that similar titles usually do arrive via the classic narrow screen realization, see Battle Garegga or DoDonPachi, or Bolo Yeung, who is BUT mildly related to our current session, though.

The core buildup is straightforward, presented in a fluent, flamboyant manner. You spend your quality time in this game by dodging the absolutely, I mean like: abbbbbsssolutely obscene number of incoming hostile projectiles, something to create rather solid focus-related fun in front of the crystal clear parallax scroll the game chases you on.

While the general tempo of the gameplay is not particularly difficult to keep up with, - exclude those Boss Fights now, baby - an awareness of the layout of the hostile units AND the inherent patterns the attack waves will come in by, will be: crucial. The less versatile mode you play Mars Matrix by, the harder it gets, and this weighs in as a primal trait of precious propensity. Let us see into this in detail.

You will rely only on a single attack button during the game, yet, depending how you handle this particular function, you can execute multiple forms of offense. Tapping the button will give you the good old projectile foam, while a short hold-and-release results in an abrupt, yet highly effective burst characterized by IDP. (Increased Damage Potential, why, what were you thinking?)

You can see a nifty little meter on the bottom left corner of the screen, - or, if you can't, then it is likely that we are discussing different outputs here - once this gauge is full, you are free to release the - please check chair and hold on to it - Singularity Cannon!

This particular baby will suck in every single hostile projectile on the screen and will throw them back at the enemies, eradicating all forms of mechanized existence in front of you. Behind you. Around you. Well, you could say:

Hey, this is a peace of quality cake, gimme the Singularity Cannon, like: FAST!

Sure, there you have it. Tend it, feed it, lick it, keep it. But, some pointers to be aware of: as the meter might have implied that to you already, Mars Matrix uses a nice balance system to prevent a superrepetitive reliance on the Singularity Cannon, though it is generally safe to say that you are free to lead a gameplay which is deeply dependent on the undoubtedly magnificent space-warpa' thing.

- Singularity Cannon ZISS!!, Baby!- OK.

In my opinion, though the less you use the Singularity Cannon, the harder the game becomes, it is a SIN to overdo it. Be sure to check out how well - or, how miserably, har! har! - you perform without this Ultimate Device of Destruction. Following the Golden Rule of Shoot'em Ups, Mars Matrix always WILL offer the Gap you can slip through to attain good old survival, and the need of finding these in those extremely dire situations are the moments the game truly shines by, I would say. (Thus, I do say, too.)

You will have to deal with some highly elaborate RPG elements in the game as well, just substitute the expression "supercoarse" instead of highly elaborate. Offering two kinds of spaceships to play within, Mars Matrix will deeply reward you in exchange of collectible Golden Cubes. You will see an Experience Bar in the upper left corner: this gauge fills up as you collect these Golden Extras, slowly depleting when it does not get any content to bite unto. So, you want to feed it, thus attaining the next Experience level, which gives you more effective weapons AND slightly more stable hair on chest. For Ladies: how about more precisely defined calves? Me would dig that.

Each level concludes by quite demanding Boss Fights. As long as you have no conception about what to anticipate from the later Main Meanies of the game: then you will have a whole new series of redefinitions of the highly delicate term: immense suckage.

The key here, of course, is to remain the Relentless Screensaver - HAH! - who always finds the method to overcome obstacles by, let that be even the All Time Fav Insert Keyboard/Joystick Into Monitor Display Special. As a charming delivery fueled by memorable outbursts of an extremely foul temper, Mars Matrix gives you powerful tools to survive, yet, also delivers the question along with it:

Chickening Out Already, Singularity Boy?

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